News: FACT launch new exhibition season

Photograph (C) Quintan Ana Wikswo

Ever since 1988, FACT (Foundation for Art and Creative Technology) has been pushing the boundaries and challenging the way we think about our world. From art to technology, to Sci-fi and beyond, artists from across the world have brought a new perspective to everyday life through their ground-breaking, innovative exhibitions…and 2015 is no different.

If you fancy yourself as an amateur detective or if you want to put everything you saw on CSI to the test, then why not visit ‘Under Black Carpets’? Artist IIona Gaynor has created an imaginary crime scene for you to solve. Complete with figures of witnesses and architectural scale models, you can put the evidence together and solve the investigation. Plus there are extra activities from 22nd-24th January that delve deeper into forensic analysis, observing our ever growing relationship with crime television programmes.

Following on from ‘Under Black Carpets’ is a revolutionary and thoughtful approach to the way we view mental health. ‘Group Therapy: Mental distress in the digital age’ explores the relationship between technology, society and mental health. Carrying on from FACT’s extensive and valuable community work, the exhibition has been developed with partners including Mersey Care NHS Trust, the British Psychological Society and the University of Liverpool.

Using art to challenge out-dated ideas about mental health, the interactive exhibition welcomes all audiences to become involved. Visitors can try out George Khut’s ‘Heart Library’, where their heart-rate changes the colour and sound of a video projection. Plus there are photographic exhibitions by artists such as Quintan Ana Wikswo, where visitors can see the result of post-traumatic stress disorder through the eyes of the individual. Whatever your age, this accessible exhibition is a fascinating insight into a topic that affects all of us at some point in our lives.

As summer arrives so does ‘Build your own’, a discussion about the growing rise of independent businesses, bloggers and co-creation. Produced with partners including Liverpool John Moores University and Crafts Council UK, artists at FACT will work with groups and communities to develop collaborative projects. In a world where social media connects us all, you can discover how our increasing connectivity is giving to the rise of ‘Indiepreneurs’ and sees a decrease in mass production.

The year begins to come to a close with a three-year research project into the effects of amnesia. Using technology to uncover inaccessible memories, Shona IIIingworth’s scientific collaborations into the life of retrograde Amnesia sufferer Clair Robertson explores constructions of identity and gives a fascinating insight into how this affects the person.

2015 sees in the New Year with the interestingly titled ‘Chicks on Speed: SCREAM’! Chicks on Speed bring their self-made instruments to the FACT audience, allowing them to try out different sounds and rhythms through a specially made app. If that wasn’t enough, the exhibition looks into the processes behind performance in the digital age. If you are a music lover, this is one exhibition you do not want to miss!

Accompanying the programme is the perfectly chosen season of films to suite every topic, so there is something for everyone on Wood Street this year. For anyone who has been to FACT in the past, be prepared for bigger, bolder and greater exhibitions than ever before. For those who are yet to discover this technological treasure trove, a world of innovation awaits you…

‘Under Black Carpets’: January 22nd – February 8th 2015

‘Group Therapy’: March 5th – 17th May 2015

‘Build your own’: June 4th – August 31st 2015

‘Shona IIIingworth: Lesions in the Landscape’: September 17th – November 22nd 2015